Waste recycling bin

ABSTRACT

A waste recycling bin has a first compartment adapted to receive recyclable waste paper, and at least a second compartment adapted to receive non-recyclable waste. Rim engaging flange portions support the second compartment against a portion of the rim of the first compartment such that the second compartment descends into the opening of the main body of the first compartment so as to form two openings to the first compartment on opposed sides of the second compartment for inserting waste paper therethrough.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a waste recycling bin and, inparticular, to a multi-compartment bin for separating used or discardedoffice paper from other waste in an office.

The invention has been developed primarily for use as an office paperrecycling bin and will be described hereinafter with reference to thisapplication. However, it will be appreciated that the invention is notlimited to this particular field of use, and may also be applied to thedisposal and temporary storage of other waste.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Commonly, office waste paper is discarded by an office worker in simple,open bins. Accompanying the waste paper in the bins may be other refuse,such as food scraps, office items such as discarded paper clips andwriting implements, and a range of other items that may or may not be ofa recyclable nature. Where an effort is made in the office to separaterecyclable items from non-recyclable items, the usual approach has beento provide a dedicated bin for each form of recyclable item. In its mostbasic form, the approach may simply require a bin for recyclable wastepaper and a bin for all other items, such as food scraps, plastic,glass, wood, or metal, which may then be separated outside the officeinto recyclable and non-recyclable items. However, such an approach hasmet with limited success as it is conditional on the office workermaking the effort to provide separate bins at easily accessible,preferably close together, locations and then ensuring that waste isproperly distributed in the appropriate bins. The problem may beheightened by bins going missing, or by having bins with insufficientcapacity or holding volume for the type of item disposed of therewithinwhich may lead to an office worker choosing to discard, say, food scrapsin the waste paper bin if the food scraps bin is full.

Another problem associated with providing separate bins dedicated toreceiving and storing different forms of waste, whether recyclable orotherwise, is the large amount of space taken up by the waste bins.

Waste containers or bins are disclosed in the prior art that seek toaddress these problems by providing a number of compartments in the onecontainer or bin.

For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,951 discloses a supplemental wasterecycling container that can be mounted to the outside of a standardsize, commercial wastebasket, thereby providing a dedicated outercompartment for receiving recyclable waste, whereas non-recyclable wastecan be deposited within the wastebasket. Alternatively, the supplementalwaste recycling container can be mounted to the inside of thewastebasket, thereby saving space around the wastebasket for otherpurposes whilst retaining two separate compartments that may bededicated to receiving different forms of waste. Secure mounting of thesupplemental waste recycling container is achieved without the need forhooks, clasps or other specialised and separately fitted mounting meanswhich often fail due to breakage or loss of parts. Furthermore, thesupplemental waste recycling container is easy to use and is less costlyto manufacture than other supplemental waste recycling containers.However, when waste paper is released into the supplemental wasterecycling container, the paper impacts with the floor of the containerin such a manner that it is caused to fold. Such folding of paperreduces the available paper storage space in the supplemental container,and the supplemental container needs to be emptied more frequently thanmay be desired.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,338 discloses a compartmentalised waste containerfor segregating different types of waste, and is intended for use in akitchen environment. The container is comprised of a floor supportedlarge receptacle which supports a hollow shell having a closable lid.Two smaller receptacles are supported within the shell and overlie apart of the opening to the larger receptacle. A space between anoutwardly and upwardly inclined front wall of the shell and the twosmaller receptacles provides an inclined access passageway that permitsa user to deposit refuse into the large receptacle via the accesspassageway or directly into either of the smaller receptacles by liftingthe lid.

The provision of the inclined access passageway serves to facilitate thedepositing of recyclable wastepaper into the large receptacle in amanner that will reduce the likelihood that the paper will settle foldedtherein. This will be due to the guiding effect of the inclined accesspassageway. However, the user must first lift the lid to gain access tothe passageway with the consequence that the user is generally above theaccess passageway and will likely deposit the waste paper vertically ornear vertically into the large receptacle. When this occurs, the wastepaper will settle folded in the large receptacle as any guiding effectof the inclined access passageway will not come into play.

These and other examples of the prior art are not suited to provide aspace-economical manner of storing waste paper. Nor are they suited tousers depositing waste paper from a position laterally remote of therecyclable waste paper compartment of a multi-compartment wasterecycling bin, as may typically be required of office personnel wholocate waste bins underneath their desks.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide amulti-compartment waste recycling bin which can readily separatetherewithin one form of waste, such as used or discarded office paper,from other forms of waste, for the purpose of facilitating the recyclingof at least some of the waste.

It is a preferred object of the present invention to provide amulti-compartment, waste recycling bin that, when a user deposits wastepaper into a recyclable waste paper compartment thereof from a positionlaterally remote of the compartment, will guide the paper to fall in anon-vertical direction to settle flat on a floor of the compartment.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, anembodiment of the invention is disclosed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention there is provided a waste recyclingbin comprising a first compartment adapted to receive a first form ofwaste, and at least a second compartment adapted to receive a secondform of waste, the first compartment including a main body having afloor, side walls, and a rim which defines an opening of the main body,the second compartment including a main body having a floor, side walls,a rim which defines an opening of the main body, and rim engaging meansfor supporting the second compartment against a portion of the rim ofthe first compartment so that the bin assumes an operable conditionwhere the first and second forms of waste are receivable through theopenings of respective first and second compartments, the rim engagingmeans so supporting the second compartment against a portion of the rimof the first compartment that at least a part of the main body of thesecond compartment descends into the opening of the main body of thefirst compartment, and wherein the portion of the rim of the firstcompartment that engages the rim engaging means of the secondcompartment is elevated from a remaining portion of the rim.

It is preferred that the rim engaging means defines a portion of theopening of the main body of the second compartment.

Preferably, the elevated portion of the rim of the first compartment isso disposed with respect to the remaining portion of the rim that thereare two openings to the first compartment on opposed sides of the secondcompartment.

In a preferred form, the or each opening to the first compartment isdefined by walls having an angulature that allows paper to be receivedfrom the side of the or each opening.

Preferably, there is a passageway defined between the main body of thefirst compartment and a first side wall of the main body of the secondcompartment through which the paper received through one of the twoopenings is guided to fall before settling flat upon a floor of thefirst compartment or upon other flatly laid paper.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a waste recycling bin according to apreferred embodiment of the invention in an operable condition forreceiving first and second forms of waste separately therewithin,

FIG. 2 is another top perspective view of the bin of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a side view of a first compartment used in the bin of FIGS. 1and 2,

FIG. 4 is a sectional end view through IV-IV of the first compartmentshown in FIG. 3,

FIG. 5 is a top view of the first compartment shown in FIG. 3,

FIG. 6 is a top perspective view of a second compartment used in the binof FIGS. 1 and 2,

FIG. 7 is a side view of the second compartment shown in FIG. 6,

FIG. 8 is an end view of the second compartment shown in FIG. 6,

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the waste recycling bin of FIGS. 1 and 2, butin a nested condition,

FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken through X-X of the bin shown in FIG.9, and

FIG. 11 is a side view of a stacked arrangement of first compartments ofanother preferred bin.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The waste recycling bin 10 shown in an operable condition in FIGS. 1 and2 has a first or primary compartment 12 and a second or secondarycompartment 14. The primary compartment 12 is adapted to receive officewaste paper and the secondary compartment 14 is adapted to receive otheritems for which recycling may not be required; such as food scraps,drink containers and discarded office items. If food scraps are to bereceived in the secondary compartment 14, it should be lined with aplastic bag.

The primary compartment 12 (see FIGS. 3 to 5) has a main body 16 havinga floor 60, side walls 38, 40, 46, 48, and a rim 18 which defines anopening 20 of the main body 16. The secondary compartment 14 (see FIGS.6 to 8) also has a main body 22 having a floor 58, side walls 70, 72,74, 76, a rim 78 which defines an opening 24 of the main body 22, andrim engaging means in the form of outwardly projecting flange portions26, 28 on opposed sides of the opening 24 which are adapted to beengaged against locating recesses 29, 31 formed continuously alongrespective elevated rim portions 30, 32 at opposed sides of the rim 18of the main body 16 of the primary compartment 12. In this way, all ofthe main body 22 of the secondary compartment 14 descends from theelevated rim portions 30, 32 of the rim 18 into the opening 20 of themain body 16 of the primary compartment 12. Each of the elevated rimportions 30, 32 are located intermediate the opposed ends of theirrespective rim segment 34, 36 provided by the upper edges of theirrespective side walls 38, 40. The portions of the rim segment 34 locatedon opposed sides of the elevated portion 30 are downwardly sloping, andthe portions of the rim segment 36 located on opposed sides of theelevated portion 32 are downwardly sloping, with the result that theother rim segments 42, 44 provided by the upper edges of theirrespective side walls 46, 48 are below the opening 24 of the main body22 of the secondary compartment 14 whereby, when the secondarycompartment 14 is supported against the elevated rim portions 30, 32 ofthe primary compartment 12, there are formed two openings 50, 52 to theprimary compartment 12 on opposed sides of the secondary compartment 14for inserting waste paper therethrough.

There are grip facilitating apertures 53, 55 cut out of respective sidewalls 46, 48, and a hand guard 57 (see FIG. 2) connected to the upperedge of each of the apertures 53, 55.

There are downwardly projecting, locating flaps 64, 65 extending fromrespective flange portions 26, 28 for reliably locating the secondarycompartment 14 upon the primary compartment 12.

The depth, and hence holding capacity, of the secondary compartment 14is substantially less than that of the primary compartment 12, and sothe floor 58 of the secondary compartment 14 is considerably raised fromthe floor 60 of the primary compartment 12 when the bin 10 is in anoperable condition.

The volume of the space 62 defined between the floors 58 and 60 has thecapacity to hold a large quantity of A4 size paper when each discardedpaper is laid flat upon the preceding one. The discarded paper may beconveniently inserted by the office worker through either of the twoopenings 50, 52, from the side of the openings laterally remote of thebin 10 given the angulature of the walls that define the openings 50,52. The bin 10 may advantageously be used by office personnel workingside by side or in close proximity where there may be insufficient spaceto locate two separate bins. For this purpose, the bin 10 is able to befed with waste paper from two sides, where respective personnel may beworking, especially in some parts of Asia.

Once released from the office worker's grip, the paper will be guided tofall through a selected passageway 54, 56 between the main body 22 ofthe secondary compartment 14 and the main body 16 of the primarycompartment 12, before settling flat upon the floor 60 or upon otherflatly laid paper. The guided fall of the paper is facilitated by theopposed bevelled corner walls 66, 68 of the secondary compartment 14.

The waste recycling bin 10 is shown in a nested condition in FIGS. 9 and10 for ease of storage and transportation. Numerals used to refer tofeatures in FIGS. 1 to 8 have been used to refer to like features inFIGS. 9 and 10. The bin 10 has had all waste removed therefrom and thesecondary compartment 14 has been released from the elevated rimportions 30, 32 of the primary compartment 12 and is now supported uponthe floor 60 of the primary compartment 12. In order to be supportedupon the floor 60, the secondary compartment 14 must be raisedsufficiently from the primary compartment 12 so that it can be turned90° in a horizontal direction and then lowered within the primarycompartment 12, whereby the closely corresponding dimensionalconfigurations of the primary and secondary compartments 12, 14 allowthe secondary compartment 14 to snugly fit within the primarycompartment 12, as particularly shown in FIG. 10. In this nestedcondition, the floor 58 of the secondary compartment 14 rests upon thefloor 60 of the primary compartment 12.

A plurality of primary compartments 12 may be nestable one withinanother to provide a stacked arrangement of primary compartments (asshown in FIG. 11) for ease of storage and transportation. A similarstacked arrangement of secondary compartments 14 can also be achieved.

Both the primary compartment 12 and the secondary compartment 14 arepreferably fabricated of polypropylene by an injection moulding process.

Various modifications may be made in details of design and constructionwithout departing from the scope and ambit of the invention.

1. A lidless waste recycling bin comprising a first compartment adaptedto receive a first form of waste, and at least a second compartmentadapted to receive a second form of waste, the first compartmentincluding a main body having a floor, side walls, end walls and a rimwhich defines an opening of the main body, the second compartmentincluding a main body having a floor, side walls, end walls, a rim whichdefines an opening of the main body, and rim engaging means forsupporting the second compartment against a portion of the rim of thefirst compartment so that the bin assumes an operable condition wherethe first and second forms of waste are receivable through the openingsof respective first and second compartments, the rim engaging meanssupporting the second compartment against a portion of the rim of thefirst compartment so that at least a substantial part of the main bodyof the second compartment descends into the opening of the main body ofthe first compartment, and wherein the portion of the rim of the firstcompartment that engages the rim engaging means of the secondcompartment is elevated from a remaining portion of the rim and whereinthe elevated portion of the first compartment that engages the rimengaging means of the second compartment comprises two opposed elevatedrim portions of opposed side walls, wherein the side walls define angledportions on each side of each elevated portion which descend to the twoend walls and wherein the elevated portion of the rim of the firstcompartment is so disposed with respect to the remaining portion of therim that there are two openings to the first compartment on opposedsides of the second compartment which may simultaneously receive papertherethrough.
 2. The bin of claim 1 wherein the rim engaging meansdefines a portion of the opening of the main body of the secondcompartment.
 3. The bin of claim 1 wherein each opening to the firstcompartment is defined by walls having an angulature that allows paperto be received from the side of the or each opening.
 4. The bin of claim1 wherein there is a passageway defined between the main body of thefirst compartment and a first end wall of the main body of the secondcompartment and wherein a bevelled corner wall is defined between thefirst side wall and the floor of the second compartment that facilitatesthe guided fall of paper through the passageway before settling flatupon the floor of the first compartment or upon other flatly laid paper.5. The bin of claim 1 wherein each of the two elevated rim portions haverespective locating recesses formed continuously therealong.
 6. The binof claim 5 wherein the rim engaging means of the second compartmentcomprise outwardly projecting flange portions of opposed side walls, andeach of the flange portions are engaged against the respective locatingrecesses of the elevated rim portions.
 7. The bin of claim 4 wherein thesecondary compartment includes opposed bevelled corner walls thatfacilitate the guided fall of paper.